The United States has announced it will upgrade U.S. Forces Japan (USFJ) to a joint force headquarters (JFHQ) with expanded operational responsibilities. The new command will report to the US Indo-Pacific Command (USINDOPACOM). The revamped structure will assume the control of about 55,000 personnel stationed in Japan from the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command some 6,200 kilometers away in Honolulu, Hawaii. The move is intended to streamline communications between the US and Japan, especially during a crisis involving China.
Japan-U.S. joint statement on war preparations forecasts doom
Tag: Military Bases
US military, seeking strategic advantages, builds up Australia’s northern bases amid China tensions
DARWIN, July 26 (Reuters) – The U.S. military is building infrastructure in northern Australia to help it project power into the South China Sea if a crisis with China erupts, a Reuters review of documents and interviews with U.S. and Australian defence officials show.
US military, seeking strategic advantages, builds up Australia’s northern bases amid China tensions
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US military eyes Australia’s Indian Ocean toehold to deter China
SYDNEY – A remote Australian island close to an Indian Ocean chokepoint for Chinese oil shipments is on a list of possible locations for US military construction aimed at deterring China, with the US saying it “may or may not” support American forces.
Australian-based Marines ready to support Manila in sea-territory skirmish
Why Are There Fears of War in the South China Sea?
Korean diaspora organization launches “US out of Korea” campaign
Responding to recent military escalation by the United States in the East Asia region, Korean diaspora organization Nodutdol launches anti-imperialist campaign
Korean diaspora organization launches “US out of Korea” campaign
Twitter: Nodutdol
Website: US Out of Korea!
NO to US-BBM War, NO to EDCA Bases! Blinken-Austin Get Out, Stay Out!
The Philippines and China have just restored peace and stability in the areas of the South China Sea contested by the two countries in a July 21, 2024 “de-escalation” deal that aimed at “easing tensions.”
NO to US-BBM War, NO to EDCA Bases!
Blinken-Austin Get Out, Stay Out!
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NO to US-BBM War, NO to EDCA Bases! – Cebu
NO to US-BBM War, NO to EDCA Bases! Blinken-Austin Get Out, Stay Out! Forum Statement
Washington’s Use and Abuse of the Philippines Takes Next Step
Washington’s Use and Abuse of the Philippines Takes Next Step
The United States has taken yet another step toward shaping the Southeast Asian archipelago nation of the Philippines into an Ukraine-style proxy with which to encircle and contain China, this time in the form of a $500 million military assistance package for Manila.
Washington’s Use and Abuse of the Philippines Takes Next Step
Australian-based Marines ready to support Manila in sea-territory skirmish
Australian-based Marines ready to support Manila in sea-territory skirmish
“We were given a warning order to support the Philippines defense forces in resupplying of the Second Thomas Shoal,” Marine Rotational Force — Darwin commander Col. Brian Mulvihill told Stars and Stripes on Wednesday at an Outback training camp in the Northern Territory.
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The Marines have been monitoring events at the shoal over a drone feed, Mulvihill said.
“We were ready to support the Philippine defense forces,” he said, noting that Marines across the Pacific are also ready to back the U.S. ally.
The rotational force can airlift food and water by pushing pallets out of helicopters, he added.
“We can control airspace and aircraft from many nations,” he said. “We provide a range of options if a host nation, through the embassy, requires assistance.”
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Darwin is an excellent platform for launching forces into Southeast Asia, according to Grant Newsham, a retired Marine colonel and senior researcher with the Japan Forum for Strategic Studies in Tokyo.
“It’s good to see Darwin and Northern Territory being used this way … rather than just as a training area for Marines, Air Force, and Australian and other forces,” he said by email Thursday.
The Marines can offer the Philippines fire support coordination. They can help with logistics and intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance and guard locations that support Philippine forces operating towards the disputed shoal, he said.
“Of course, Marines can deploy aboard Philippine resupply boats alongside [Philippine] personnel,” he said.
Marine engineers could repair the Sierra Madre at the shoal and Marine helicopters could resupply it, Newsham added.
“A U.S. amphibious ship or two with Marines and their aircraft and other hardware aboard deployed to Second Thomas Shoal would be a serious force — and also sending a clear message,” he said. “Deploying Marines in the Philippines with their aviation, long-range rockets, and other hardware has a political significance in itself.”
Related:
Japan Forum for Strategic Studies
South China Sea: Philippines says to solely run Second Thomas Shoal resupply missions
The West is Learning the Wrong Lessons about Airpower in Ukraine [Updated w/ video]
A recent article appearing in the US-based Business Insider titled, “Russia’s showing NATO its hand in the air war over Ukraine,” would provide a showcase of the deep deficit in military expertise driving increasingly unsustainable, unachievable foreign policy objectives. The article summarizes a number of interviews conducted with Western “airpower experts,” exhibiting a profound misunderstanding of modern military aviation, air defenses, and their role on and above the battlefield.
The West is Learning the Wrong Lessons about Airpower in Ukraine
China Ignorance on the Hill
As the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability hearing drew on, the claims about China grew more and more unhinged, writes Megan Russell.
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China unveils evidences showing Philippine grounded warship at Ren’ai Jiao destroys coral reefs, endangers marine organism
While Manila mulls over filing a case against China with so-called “solid evidence of the damaged coral reefs caused by Chinese actions,” China, on Monday, released a report based on an unprecedentedly extensive and detailed on-site ecosystem survey around Ren’ai Jiao (also known as Ren’ai Reef), with solid evidence showing that the grounded warship has caused damage to the coral reefs and environmental pollution in the South China Sea.
Related:
Experts warn of Philippines scheming for ‘new arbitration’ on South China Sea + More
Philippines rejects China’s accusation of environmental damage in South China Sea
China has in turn dredged sand and coral to build artificial islands in the South China Sea, which it says is normal construction activity on its territory, but which other nations say is aimed at enforcing its claim to the waterway.
A report by the Center for Strategic and International Studies last year found China’s construction activity buried more than 4,600 acres (1,861 acres) of reef.
China claims almost all of the vital waterway, where $3 trillion worth of trade passes annually, including parts claimed by the Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia, Taiwan and Vietnam.
Greg Poling, from the front CSIS, claims that Vietnam is also building artificial islands.
Ms. Cat’s Chronicles 
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